FRUIT LOOPS, 15min., USA
Directed by Danielle Bero
A 30 something year old lesbian from NYC documents a series of horrible dates as she tries to find the one.

http://www.daniellebero.com/fruitloops
https://www.twitter.com/daniellebero
https://www.instagram.com/fruitloopsfilm

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

What motivated me to make Fruit Loops is that it is loosely based on my own dating life and also my friends experiencing similar difficulties and motifs. It was twofold because I wanted to create queer media that wasn't rooted in trauma or tropes but I also wanted the queer experience to be a universal feeling so everybody could understand that whether this is queer or not we are all experiencing a very similar dating landscape and how we connect with folks. I was seeking to create entertainment for queer people specifically but also anybody that can come in contact with it can enjoy and engage in the material. It was really important for me to create something that was lighthearted but still heavy and real because so much queer media is stereotypical and mainly rooted in heavy trauma so it's all the time to have something light and playful.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you
to make this film?

I was extremely lucky in that this was my first ever project and I never went to film school or had any film background whatsoever. This was born out of the women's weekend film challenge which was my first time ever formally being on a set. From there I made connections with so many brilliant women and non-binary folk in film and we started a little writing group and from there I drafted the first iteration of Fruit Loops in February 2023 and we mapped out everything by March for filming and production and by April we took a weekend and shot everything super bare-bones but with such an incredible group of women and nonbinary folk. And then by June we pretty much had everything in rotation because I wanted to have everything set for pride I really wanted to launch this film and concept, the Instagram, everything just in time for pride it felt like the perfect dovetail to the story to be emerged and birth during pride.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Pink Lesbian

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

The biggest obstacle is finances, I was able to raise just under 2k but the project itself even with its bare-bones model and people working for absolutely for free still was more than that so just definitely funding. I will say though with the funding issue actually created some pretty magical moments that's why we moved to the picnic scenes because it was cheaper and easier than working with the restaurant owners. The other issue was this was my first project so I didn't really know a lot and I learned as I went and so essentially I was flying the plane as I was building it. And just like with the funding issue created a creative and innovative opportunities also me never having any experience allowed me to really dive headfirst without a plan and without anxiety, without second-guessing or without any red tape or thinking I can't do something, everything was possible cause I didn't know what was possible to begin with.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking
about your film in the feedback video?

My initial reaction to the audience discussing the film was I was happy that it landed. It was great to see my target audience enjoying a film, recognizing some of the depths and darkness to it but ultimately seeing the humor, the joyfulness and the beauty in finding yourself again. Also think it's interesting that folks tend to believe when they watch this film that the dates are the crazy ones when Jada is creating the exact same experience for each girl and even wearing the exact same outfit on each date so there is the reason why I went with Fruit Loops as the title because while it's a nod to queerness and a play on thinking about mental health and the looping that we see when we try to make and force these connections but also recognizing that it's not just that everybody else is crazy, we're also crazy too. I also really love that folks leaned into the mockumentary style as that was very intentional in keeping the light heartedness but also allowing the main character to break the fourth wall and share their perspective.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

Well when I was in elementary school I knew I wanted to make films or I wanted to be in the film industry and remember watching movies like Free Willy and Goonies and Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda and Buffy the Vampire Slayer and just recognizing how much imagination and creativity can go into crafting a story and bringing that story to life. As a poet film is a very natural progression to the images and sentiments I already create with words.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

That answer is easy heteronormative films and so that's why I was important for me to create something that was queer and fun and pretty and poignant.

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other
festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking
career?

I mean unfortunately it's finances so it's hard to get to the festivals and we've now won quite a few and we haven't been able to afford to attend any of them yet. Zi ok in education full time and most of my team is working on creative projects that aren't paying or are paying very little so we don't have the means to get to the film festivals to experience the joy of our film being shown. That's why the audience feedback meant so much to us because even though we couldn't be there at least we could experience what folks felt and thought about the film.

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your
experiences been working on the festival platform site?

Yes we submit it on film freeway and we've now won 6 of the 7 festivals we have submitted to. Again just to echo the last several questions it's the finances that means $50, $60 and $70 to submit gets pricey fast.

10. What is your favorite meal?

If going by cuisine I would say my top three would be Indonesian, Peruvian and Italian.

11. What is next for you? A new film?

I am still promoting Fruit Loops and I'm hoping to land us as a series and I'm also working on another queer project that I'm in the process of writing right now. But really my focus is building Fruit Loops as a brand and a concept and hopefully capitalizing off of the momentum because I think it's an important story and queer people deserve a Friends and How I Met Your Mother too.